This invention relates generally to refrigeration appliances, and, more particularly, to storage bin and basket modules for use in refrigeration appliances.
Known refrigeration appliances, including refrigerators and freezers, typically include a cabinet housing including an outer case and one or more inner liners therein that defines a refrigeration compartment, such as a fresh food compartment and a freezer compartment for storing food and beverage items. The fresh food compartment and freezer compartments are closed by separate access doors hingedly attached to the case. A number of storage shelves, baskets, and drawers are employed in the fresh food compartment to organize food. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,551.
Furthermore, storage bin shelves are often integrated into the refrigerator access doors for storage of food and beverage items. Thus, for example, condiments and bottles may be stored in the fresh food compartment door, and frozen juice concentrates and frozen vegetables may be stored in the freezer compartment door rather than in the fresh food and freezer compartments. As such, the items in the door storage bins are accessible apart from the fresh food and freezer compartments when the doors are opened yet located in the refrigeration compartments when the doors are closed.
In some type of side-by-side refrigerators, multiple storage bin shelves are integrated in a vertically stacked orientation relative to one another. The size of the shelves and the spacing between them, however, can be restrictive for loading and unloading items to and from the storage bins. Larger items and oddly shaped items are therefore difficult to load and unload from the storage door shelves, and several manipulations of the items are required to fit items into and remove the items from the storage door. For example, taller items must be tilted about their lower ends to fit them into door storage bins and then rotated back to a level position in the bins. Smaller items may not be loaded or unloaded with one smooth movement either, but must rather be positioned in the door storage shelves with both a horizontal movement and a vertical movement. Still further, access door storage shelves can be difficult to clean.
The aforementioned difficulties are more pronounced when shelves and bins are located in lower portions of the door where they are neither easily reached nor in a clear line of sight for the user.
In one aspect, a storage module for a refrigeration appliance is provided. The storage module comprises a base comprising opposing side supports and a basket hingedly coupled to said side supports and tiltable about a rotational axis therethrough.
In another aspect, a modular storage bin for an access door of a refrigeration appliance is provided. The bin comprises a module base comprising first and second side supports configured for attachment to the access door, at least one hinge rotatably coupled to one of said first and second side supports, and a storage basket coupled to said hinge and tiltable relative to said base side supports.
In still another aspect, a modular storage bin for an access door of a refrigeration appliance is provided. The bin comprises a module base comprising first and second side supports configured for attachment to the access door, at least one hinge rotatably coupled to one of said first and second side supports, and a storage basket comprising at least bottom and front sides. The bottom of said basket is received in said hinge adjacent said front side, and the basket is selectively positionable between a substantially upright closed position and a tilted open position.
In an additional aspect, a modular storage bin for an access door of a refrigeration appliance is provided. The bin comprises a module base comprising first and second side supports configured for attachment to the access door and a floor extending between said first and second side supports. The side supports comprise a basket stop portion, and a hinge is rotatably coupled to each of said first and second side supports, each said hinge comprising a neck portion and a channel portion extending therefrom. A storage basket comprises a frame comprising a front side, a bottom and first and second corners extending therebetween. The basket corners are positioned adjacent each of said module base side supports, and the basket frame is received in said hinges adjacent said corners. The basket is tiltable about said hinges between a substantially upright position wherein said basket is separated from said basket stop portion and a tilted position wherein said basket contacts said basket stop portion.
In yet another aspect, a refrigeration appliance is provided: The appliance comprises a cabinet, a refrigeration compartment liner within said cabinet and comprising at least one refrigeration compartment, and at least one access door coupled to said cabinet for closing said refrigeration compartment. The access door comprises at least a shelf side support, and a modular storage bin is coupled to said access door shelf side support. The storage bin comprises at least one hinge supported by said shelf side support and a basket received in said hinge. The basket is rotatable about said hinge between an upright closed position and a tilted open position providing a direct line of access into said basket.